Bodø will be the first Norwegian city offering ecological economics in high school

Next year, students in Bodø will have the unique opportunity to choose ecological economics as a subject in high school. So far, no other schools in the country offer it.

In April, we interviewed Dr. Ove Jakobsen, Professor of Ecological Economics at Nord University and Ecological Economics Projects Coordinator for Bodø2024 – Bodø European Capital of Culture 2024.

Jakobsen is at the helm of this project and is currently working in collaboration with Bodø High School to implement it. This is part of a major investment in ecological economics that Bodø2024 is involved in. The curriculum has been approved by the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training. The teaching of the subject will be evaluated every year from now on, with the hope being that the offer will eventually become nationwide.

“Approval of the program subject ‘Ecological Economics 1 and 2’ for testing at Bodø High School from the autumn of 2022 represents a breakthrough in the work of disseminating knowledge to young people about how they can participate in developing sustainable societies with a high quality of life, something which is central to the Bodø 2024 project,” said Jakobsen.

According to head of department Tarjei Eck Hansen, students at Topplinje Business at Bodø High School are the first ones able to choose the new program subject.

“Ecological economics looks very exciting. It is an offer that gives us perhaps a little more insight into how society and sustainable economics actually work. Ecology is very important for the future, and we are the future,” students at Topplinje Business at Bodø High School said.

“It is simply fantastic news for Bodø2024 that ecological economics will be an elective subject at Bodø High School. Ecological economics is an area of ​​focus for us. When we now get to introduce the subject to the young people in Bodø, it will provide a completely new opportunity to focus on the challenges society faces in the coming years, not to mention what we can do better to solve them. It is the young people who are the future, and who think the new thoughts,” said director of Bodø2024 André Wallann Larsen.

What is ecological economics?

Ecological economics is about understanding economics as subordinate to the framework of nature and is based on ecological principles. Knowledge of ecological-economic theory and method provides a basis for understanding sustainable solutions locally, nationally, and globally. Ecological economics helps to understand how economics, high quality of life, and sustainable nature are interdependent.

“Ecological economics focuses on developing local societies in a direction where we focus upon the enjoyment of life and quality of life for humans and all other living entities on Earth,” Ove Jakobsen explained in his interview with Norway Today.

“One of the questions at the core of ecological economics is: How can we share resources on Earth to satisfy the basic needs of human beings without disturbing the balance of the ecosystems? And then we apply that to a change in the economy.”

Source: #NorwayTodayTravel

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